Navrongo is located south of Paga, the main border crossing between Ghana and Burkina Faso. The town lies in the tropical savannah belt, characterised by grassland with a few scattered trees. "Navoro" is the original name for Navrongo and this name is still used today by the old people of the town. Navoro was founded in mid XVIIIth century by Butu, a prince and a warrior who one day came to hunt close to the current location of Navrongo.

The land was so muddy that his feet were sinking. Butu went back to his compound and said to his two brothers that he saw a good place to settle where “Na Voro”. In the Kassen language “Na” means “to put your foot down” and Voro, “soft ground”.

The area was occupied by both the Kassena and the Nankana. These ethnic groups had a relative independence as they had not been invaded by the Ashanti Kingdom (southern side) nor by the Moshi Kingdom (northern side). The Portuguese arrived in the coastal zone around 1471, establishing trading posts for gold and slaves.

The land was so muddy that his feet were sinking. Butu went back to his compound and said to his two brothers that he saw a good place to settle where “Na Voro”. In the Kassen language “Na” means “to put your foot down” and Voro, “soft ground”. The area was occupied by both the Kassena and the Nankana. These ethnic groups had a relative independence as they had not been invaded by the Ashanti Kingdom (southern side) nor by the Moshi Kingdom (northern side). The Portuguese arrived in the coastal zone around 1471, establishing trading posts for gold and slaves.

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They were soon followed by the Dutch, the Danish and the English who invaded the Ashanti Kingdom in 1874 and declared the “Gold Coast” a British colony. In 1897, several treaties were established with the “Northern rulers” and the British hoisted their flag in Wa, from where they could control the “Northern Territories”.

The following year, an Anglo-French convention drew up the 11th parallel to the North as the boundary dividing the British lands from the French, separating Navrongo tribes from their brothers living in what has now become the Burkina Faso.

As a result of the constant work of the missionaries, the chapel built in 1910 could no longer meet the needs of the growing religious community. So, the Fathers began to organise the construction of a larger building, one which would remain until 2000 and beyond.

Throughout 1918, discussions took place with the Bishop of Ouagadougou regarding this project.

On September 5, 1919, a letter of permission for the building came with the necessary funds to construct it, mainly from the Vatican, but also with donations from Europe, Canada and America. By September 12, work started with the preparation of the site and the collection of building materials. The brickyard was located on the bank of the stream “Kansula”, and the bricks were carried on the heads of the workers to the building site.

By January 10, 1920, the construction was started with six masons. Originally the church was a rectangular building with a flat roof inspired from the local architecture. The interior was simple with, just two rows of plain rectangular mud columns to support the roof. The plastering and the traditional laterite floor were done by the women from nearby villages. The furniture inside the church was basic : a mixture of wooden pews and seats made of small mud bricks, and a simple wooden altar on the top of a mud base. Many times during the construction, the fathers despaired as to whether or not it would ever be completed. For a long time the wood for the roof did not arrive and work could not progress. But finally, the opening day arrived.

On August 15, 1920, the bell, hanging on a small wooden structure on the parapet wall, rang out calling the worshippers. The church experienced many changes. In 1925, the flat roof was changed to become a pitched roof with trusses and corrugated metal sheets. One can assume that the traditional system was not so well suited to cross such a large span (almost 15 meters) and that this change had already been planned. It is at this time that arches were built between the columns. Father Lucien Melan- çon also designed the tower which was built in 1927.

In 1934 it became a cathedral as the Navrongo parish grew to become the Mother Parish in Northern Ghana. Since that time, the cathedral has undergone much maintenance. There are also traces of changes, but the limited information available makes it difficult to have a precise idea of what exactly was done until the beginning of 1972, when for the forthcoming consecration of the Rt. Rev. Bishop Rudolph Akanlu, the church was restored and decorated with the traditional mural paintings.

In spite of this renovation, some structural problems were observed in the late 1970’s. The size of the cathedral was also found inadequate. In an attempt to address these needs, a new concrete cathedral building was begun in 1980. An impressive, adventurous structure, intended to fulfil the needs of the people, it remains uncompleted.

In 1992, the old cathedral which had not been maintained for long was finally re-roofed and re-plastered. But in 1993, the bell-tower of the cathedral was suspected of imminent collapse. In June 1995, the Ghana Museum and Monuments Board (GMMB) recommended the dismantling and re-constructing of this bell-tower using the same materials and techniques, but removing the bells considering that they were too heavy for the structure. The tower was almost immediately consolidated with two buttresses on each side of the entrance. In 1996, after the rainy season, it was completely dismantled and its reconstruction started. Today, “Our Lady of Seven Sorrows”, the last mud cathedral in the region still stands, impressive, a masterpiece of Ghanaian heritage and art.

In addition to being recognised as a major monument in the country, the Cathedral has been inscribed on the tentative list of sites to be nominated to the World Heritage List of UNESCO.

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